As technology evolves, new opportunities emerge for composers to produce and convey meaning through their texts.
In your prescribed text, how does the composer use distinct textual form to produce and convey meaning?

Techniques used in "The Searching"

  1. Screenlife arrangements: The whole movie takes place on computer and smartphone screens. The format is known as "screenlife", which involves the audience watching the characters interact through a digital device. The approach is similar to found footage but uses modern (present-day) technology like laptop and mobile instead of traditional cameras for recording a video.
  2. Found footage: The movie "The Searching" falls under the found footage genre which became popular in the late 1990s and 2000s with movies such as "The Blair Witch Project" and "Paranormal Activity." but Searching uses modern digital screens in the movie scenes.
  3. Cinéma Vérité: Cinéma Vérité includes point-of-view shots, shaky camera movements, lower resolution footage, and blurry-cut editing. These shots are used to create realism and immersion in a scene.
  4. Point-of-view: A majority of the scene from the movie is shot from the perspective of the characters' screens which encourages the audience to experience the emotions and actions the character is going through which engages the audience.
  5. Dutch angles: A very uncomfortable and disoriented view of a character from a tilted direction is the Dutch angle which creates and adds tension and thriller to the film.
  6. Mise en Abyme: This is a technique that involves placing a smaller version of text within the large version of text. This feature shows screens within a screen which highlights performative and misleading representation which people create online. The technique talks about how the wall between reality and social media is different in a sense that people have the freedom to do anything they say on the internet without examining the impact of negative impact on society which it creates for the person.

Implementation of Techniques

ACT I

  • The opening scene starts with David creating a user profile for Margot on a Windows XP computer. The audience views family photos, videos, messages, and emails, immersing them in the life of the family (David, Margot, Palema).
  • The montage of Margot life through vides, recording from webcams and social media posts allows the viewers to witness the whole life of the family with challenges and achievements directly through the screen.
  • The opening action uses the cinema verite style to depict the everyday life of the Kim Family with the transition from digital platforms and flow of the events to make it more realistic.
  • The use of non-diegetic sound in the scene of Margot's Mother on her deathbed suffering from lymphoma makes the scene more emotional to the viewers.
  • Details like the "Start" button on Windows XP, and changing interfaces help provide context and background to the non-dialogue part of the scenes.

ACT II

  • David uncovers clues through the use of Margot's digital footprint from social media, emails, and other online communications. The audience experiences it through the experience of David's investigation from his computer screen.

  • The film continues with the found footage genre by David's perspective of how desperate he is through video calls, and message logs, one of the scenes contained surveillance cameras to reinforce himself and his tension in the investigation.
  • David's desktop getting increasingly cluttered and chaotic represents how his desperation and mental trauma has been worst as the story goes on as a metaphor.
  • The sound track is intensified at the moment and tells us the suspense and emotional weight that David is facing as the story goes on.
  • The confrontation with Detective Rosemary Vick and mistrust of his brother add guilt and inadequacies as a father which drives the emotional core narrative of the story.
  • The lack of online interaction and subsequent media coverage highlights the violent outbursts of David.

ACT III

  • David uses the Windows computer to compile photos for their funeral of Margot's and later discovers clues through online and digital interaction maintaining the immersive experience.
  • David finding out the deception of Detective Rosemary Vick and the ultimate rescue of Margot is conveyed through a news broadcast, video calls highlight realism.
  • The chaotic desktop from Act II and the contrast to the ordered files indicate the journey has changed from despair to hope.
  • The soundtrack of despair at the beginning shifts to a hopeful tone which covers the truth that Margot survived.
  • David begins Act III with a downhearted sign but his usual questioning and investigation lead him to discover the truth about Margot's disappearance and Detective Vick's involvement. This restores hope over conflicts and brings closure to the movie.
Sherlock Holmes